Strange Love
by ElenaxoxoSilber
Summary: Alex Kennedy is selected to be Prentiss' BAU replacement. While there, she meets know-it-all genius Spencer Reid. She soon struggles to deal with her feelings and catching serial killers all at the same time. What's a girl to do?
1. Chapter 1

"Alex." I stated in a strong, forceful voice. A frown took over my lips and I cleared her throat, changing tone. "I am Alex." I shook my head. "I'm Alex!" I jutted her hand towards the full length mirror in front of me. My fake smile dropped. "I'm pathetic." It was hopeless. Like practicing greetings to a mirror would prepare me for this day. Stopping my greeting practices, I looked down at my current outfit. "Okay, no. Definitely not." I sighed, quickly shrugging off the button down top that made me look like an eighty-year-old grandma.

The phrase 'dress to impress' repeated over in my mind like a mantra as a pile of clothes sat on my bed. Donning only a bra and underwear, I ran around my room like a headless chicken trying to find an outfit. I groaned, running my hands over my face as my eyes glanced at the clock. I needed to be at the BAU in forty-five minutes and if I didn't hurry, I was going to look like I just rolled out of bed, and even worse: late.

Being that I was just upgraded from intern to agent, being late on my first day probably wasn't the best impression. I was already on thin ice with the higher ups for being put through a short version of training. The FBI's BAU—Behavioral Analysis Unit—had been my dream job ever since I could remember. I was never one of those girls who had a problem picking their major in college. From day one, I had set my mind to working my ass off on psychology and forensics. So here I was at twenty-six years old ready to start my first real big job feeling like it was a first day at a new school. What would the people be like? What would my team be like? Would they like me? I was the assigned replacement for Agent Emily Prentiss. She, actually, was the one who got me into this job. We knew each other from back in the day, her parents knew mine, and the rest is history. Emily had just relocated to London to take over INTERPOL. I owed her my life for this favor. Hopefully her colleagues liked me as much as she did.

I chewed on a granola bar as I glared at the various outfits spread across my bed. Deep down inside I was wishing that jobs like this required sweat pants and t-shirts, but alas I was out of luck. With an annoyed groan, I finally decided on my outfit. While in the midst of finishing my small breakfast, I slipped on a pair of skinny black slacks, a white chiffon tank, and a black blazer. I took my brown locks down from their pony tail and brushed them out, while ever so often looking over to the clock and anxiously fretting for the worst. Thanking God I already finished my makeup, I slipped on a pair of nude sandal heels and took the last bite of my breakfast.

"There's nothing to worry about. It'll be fine. It'll be good." I muttered to myself as I stared into the mirror. I bit the inside of my lip, praying my words were true.

The elevator chimed as I reached the sixth floor of the BAU. The doors slowly retracted open, revealing a large lobby and a set of open glass doors that lead into the large office area. My throat suddenly dried out and my heart began pounding against my chest cavity. I had nothing to worry about. It was like ripping off a band aid—I just had to get it over with. I stepped though the doors of the BAU and my eyes immediately beamed at every nook and cranny of the office. Everything looked so…official. Sure I worked in the FBI office before but this, this was different. Most people were just getting into work. A group of four stood a little ways from me chatting.

"How's the new agent?" I heard one of them ask as my eyes scanned over.

"We're not sure. I heard he'll be in today though." A boy's voice mentioned. While continuously looking around while standing frozen in my spot, I finally admitted defeat knowing I'd never find my lead agents office.

"Wonder what having a new guy on the teams gonna be like. You excited baby girl?" One of the men quietly laughed. Swallowing fear and stubbornness, I trotted over to the group of two men and two women.

"Excuse me," I clutched onto the black bag hanging at my side, "do you know where I can find Aaron Hotchner? I'm his new agent." The group became still and quiet, noticing the unfamiliar face in their office. To my left stood a blonde woman donning a black and white British flag dress, with earrings and necklace to match. Her curls were tangled with neon pink flowers in her hair. Her bright pink glasses weren't the only thing to make a statement, a large bag filled with London themed items hung from her hands. Beside her was an attractive man with the most beautiful caramel chocolate skin I've ever seen. A smile lifted his lips, showing off his insanely white teeth as he let out a surprised chuckle. Beside him stood a petite blonde with a bag hung over her shoulders. A small replica of a red trolley toyed in her hand. Lastly, in between the two of us, stood a boy who looked to be around my age. Unruly sandy brown hair framed his face, where you could see a hint of stubble on his upper lip and chin. His patterned button down, tie, cardigan, and Louis Vuitton messenger bag made me question my entire outfit choice. I totally should have gone with the skirt.

"You're Alexander?" The older man questioned. Why did they all look so confused and—wait, Alexander?

"Alexandra, but Alex works too." I chuckled. The petite blonde blushed.

"We must have had a computer glitch, I'm so sorry. I'm Agent Jareau, but just call me JJ." She flashed a friendly smile. "I'll take you to Hotch, you can meet the others in the briefing room."

"Thanks." I said with a breath of relief. JJ ushered me forward and around the abundance of desks. I looked back and smiled to the remaining three agents before following JJ once more.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Alex. Sorry we're all frazzled, Spencer and I just got back from Seattle and Derek and Penelope just got back from London. Heck of a Monday, right?" JJ laughed.

"Are they on our team?" I questioned.

"Yes! Sorry." She apologized once more. "I'll introduce you to everyone once we're all together. Hotch—sorry, Hotchner's—office is right through that door. He may look scary but I swear he doesn't bite. Just not big on smiling. I'll see you in a few minutes!" Before I knew it, JJ was off and I was walking through Agent Hotchner's office door.

"Can I help you?" He lifted his head from doing paperwork.

"Hi." My voice timidly squeaked. I cleared my dry throat. "Sorry, hi. I'm a new member of your team—"

"Yes, Alexandra Kennedy. Emily told me a lot about you." Agent Hotchner walked over to me and gave me a firm handshake. His facial features were just as firm as his handshake. They were like stone.

"I hope only good things." I joked.

"Of course. Welcome to the team, it's nice to finally meet you." He nodded. No smile yet, just a light grin. Maybe I was getting somewhere?

"Likewise. I'm pretty excited to get going."

"Well, that's going to be sooner than later for you. We just got called in for a case."

"Already?" The words blurted out before I could filter myself. I mentally slapped myself, that wasn't something to say to your boss.

"You'll get used to it. Go get settled at your desk and come to the briefing room in ten." He instructed.

"Yes sir," I nodded. "Thank you Agent Hotchner".

Like the punctual first day nerd I was, I was the first to be in the debriefing room. I stood around the wooden table, running my fingers over the leather seats and waiting for any member of the team to walk in. The first happened to be the same older man from earlier.

"So you're the new boy, huh?" He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Hate to break it to you about the whole gender switch." I shrugged, walking over to the man and shaking his hand.

"Derek Morgan."

"Alex Kennedy."

"Looks like we're going to have another Reid on the team. What are you, twenty-five?" Agent Morgan laughed.

"Twenty-six." I corrected. "What do you mean?"

"Morgan, do you know that —" The boy my age from earlier walked in holding his messenger bag and clutching a cup of coffee for dear life.

"That's Reid." Agent Morgan threw his thumb at the boy.

"Doctor Spencer Reid." The boy jutted his hand at me. I shook it, praying my palms weren't clammy. Doctor Reid retracted his hand after a quick shake.

"Kid joined the team at twenty-three."

"Wow." Was all I could say. "Can't beat that."

"Looks like you're only a few years short. Statistically, the average age to become a member of the BAU is late twenties early thirties so you are ahead of most people already." He informed. "By that age, most people are—" Agent Morgan put a hand over Doctor Reid's mouth.

"You'll also learn he's a genius that doesn't shut up". Agent Morgan flashed another smile.

"Hey!" Agent Reid cried.

"It's not his fault he graduated high school when he was twelve. He's too smart for his own good."

"Certified genius. Impressive". I noted.

"Why thank you." He smiled.

"Well, I'm really excited to be here. Emily hyped up the job and I'm a little too excited."

"I didn't know you knew Emily. But, it looks like we've already got a case so you better prepare yourself." Agent Morgan said.

"Yeah, I heard. I'll try, Agent Morgan."

"Just Morgan." He laughed. "We don't call each other agent's around here."

"Right." I pursed my lips. "What about you, Dr. Reid?"

"Doctor Reid works." He stated. Morgan nudged him. "Reid works as well."

"Good to know." I flashed a toothy smile. I turned around and took a seat. After Derek muttered something to Reid, Reid fumbled over and took a seat next to me. Morgan took a seat beside him. Before we could get another word in, JJ and the other blonde walked in with an older man who I recognized to be David Rossi. I tried keeping my cool but inside I was freaking out. The man in front of me was the author of the books displayed proudly on my bookshelf. I'd always been a big fan, running over to Barnes and Nobles whenever the book was released and spending the day reading. He was one of the greatest crime authors.

"So this is the Alexander I've been hearing about?" He gave a hefty laugh.

"That was a glitch on the computers part." The eccentric blonde winced. Rossi leaned over the table to shake my hand. "SSA David Rossi."

"Former marine and writer of the greatest best sellers. Big fan." I smiled, trying to contain my giddiness. "Alex Kennedy" I reciprocated the hand shake.

"I like her already." Rossi nodded to the team, impressed. "Hotch told me you know Emily."

I was quickly catching on Agent Hotchner's nickname was 'Hotch'. Yet, I wouldn't dare to call him that myself.

"Old friend." I nodded.

"Can't be too old, you're more of a baby than Reid when he joined!"

"Few years older, actually." I laughed. "I've heard all about boy genius being a record setter." I could hear Reid mumble something under his breath.

"Penelope Garcia at your service." The eccentrically dressed blonde jutted in. "I'm the teams' tech analyst, and let me just say how fabulous those shoes are." She complimented. I blushed.

"Thank you."

"Garcia, don't embarrass the poor girl." Morgan laughed.

"What? Can't have a few girl to girl compliments in here? Ugh, too much testosterone I tell you." She shook her head.

"Good morning everyone, sorry to call you in so immediately. I see you've all met Agent Kennedy, so let's get started." Agent Hotchner walked in with an older woman at his side. My eyes gawked noticing it to be Erin Strauss, the BAU's section chief. To say she was intimidating was an understatement. During my interview she made me want to curl up into a ball and disappear from the face of the earth.

"A few hours ago there was a prison transfer to the county hospital in Abilene, Texas. The ambulance crashed and the prisoner escaped." Hotchner explained while Strauss handed out the cases file.

"He's wearing the EMT uniform and he's armed with the guard's weapon." She informed. I opened the case folder, seeing the police report along with the suspects picture.

"Aren't the US Marshalls on this?" Morgan asked.

"Yes they are. But they need your help because this is what they found inside." Strauss pressed a button for the TV in front of us to turn on. The picture showed the dead guard laying on the stretcher with a dead driver behind him. "The EMT and the driver died in the accident. The guard, however, suffocated. The screen focused in on the EMT in the white shirt. And then she clicked to another picture of the guard. The edge of his mouth was bloody and it looked to be shut with something.

"What's on his mouth?" I asked.

"It was sewn shut." She announced.

"So it's The Silencer?" JJ realized.

"Or this guys a copycat." Rossi thought.

"Forensics confirmed it's the same unique double-knot ligature he used in all three murders." Hotchner informed.

"His last known victim was in 2004 and he was never caught." Reid spoke up.

"So he didn't go dormant by choice. He ended up getting locked up." I realized.

"Why not just escape? If he hadn't sewn the guard's mouth shut, we should never known it was him." Morgan thought.

"He wants us to know he's back." Rossi believed.

"Okay so we've got his face. What's his name?" I questioned. Realizing I was asking most of the questions, my cheeks burned red and I shut my mouth.

"John Doe. He was pulled over in '04 for a traffic violation. No registration, no tags, no ID."

"There's no way he did eight years for that."

"They searched the car and found a gun with a silencer." Hotchner added.

"A silencer? He was practically telling them who he was and no one made the connection." Rossi shook his head.

"It's a federal offense, carries a 30-year minimum sentence. But it was actually what he did inside that guaranteed him life without parole." We all reviewed the file.

"He killed two men while inside." JJ rose a brow.

"And never said a word." Reid added.

"More like speaking with his fists. There's got to be something wrong." I flipped through the report on John Doe. "Remaining silent for 8 years takes a hell of a lot of self-restraint. Not saying a lot is understandable but not saying absolutely one word? How do we know he's not mute? A condition response?" I finally spoke up once more.

"Garcia's gathering all the files from '04. We'll catch up on the plane. Wheels up in thirty." Hotchner announced.

It's a known fact that Alex Kennedy is a horrible listener. But for once in her life, she took advice from the great Emily Prentiss and packed a bag to keep in her car if a case popped up. And bam, just like that, I was off on my first day. While Rossi, Hotchner, Morgan, and JJ sat in the quad seats by the window, I sat across from Reid on one of the couches. The six of us reviewed the case files from '04.

"Did any of you work this case?" I piped up.

"That was during my extended sabbatical." Rossi shrugged.

"We all consulted but never went to Texas." There was a moment of silence.

"Seriously?" I blurted out. "I'm sorry, sir. I just don't understand. Three women? Four months? That's an unbelievable kill rate. And the signature is undeniable. Surrogates no doubt." I looked up and timidly met Hotchner in the eye.

"We weren't invited by the local police." He pursed his lips.

"Wow." I sighed.

"Welcome to our world." He commented. While the rest of the team continued to consult, I reviewed the case in my own silence. What exactly besides shutting his victims up did The Silencer want to accomplish?

"Kennedy and I will head to the US Marshalls." I heard Hotch finish talking. I looked over to him and nodded, wishing I paid attention more as he talked. God I needed coffee.

Texas heat was like nothing I could compare to. It was like sitting in a sauna with a coat on. It made me want nothing more than to just sit in an ice bath. Thankfully, the US Marshall's office was fully air conditioned and made my brain feel like it wasn't melting out of my ears.

"SSA's Hotchner and Kennedy." Hotch greeted the man waiting for us in the lobby.

"Bob Tilghman. Thank you for coming, I got my whole team on this."

"Any leads?" Hotch asked as we walked through the US Marshalls office.

"Well the wreck happened out in the middle of no where and the sun comes up at six so we figure he's somewhere within a 12-mile radius of the accident site." Tilghman explained.

"You think he's moving on foot in this heat?" I shockingly asked.

"It'll kill you under the best conditions. He stole some supplies but not enough to hold up too long. You can expect him to be active tonight."

"Where can we set up?" Hotch wondered.

"Right in here." Tilghman pointed ahead. While we walked past the cubicles I could smell a pot of fresh coffee.

"Any coffee here by chance?"

"Just started a pot!" Tilghman announced the words that sounded like music to my ears.

"Perfect." I smiled. Tilghman led us into a room set up just for us. There were two glass boards filled with John Doe's mug shot, most wanted posters, and pictures of the recent crime scene.

"We got his picture plastered up everywhere, but if he's hiding. He's hiding. It's gonna be awful hard to weed him out." Tilghman sighed. I looked at the boards, crinkling my nose and frowning.

"One thing you'll learn about me is that I'm not good at waiting." I looked up to meet Hotch's gaze.

"Neither am I." He agreed.

"Does the media know about this?" I turned around and asked Tilghman.

"No, we've been trying to keep them at bay. They don't know too much." I nodded in understanding. Two officers carried in a couple of boxes containing the case files from '04.

"We've got a few hours to figure out this guy inside and out. If he kills in the dark that's just what he'll do." Hotch announced.

An hour passed and Hotch had left me by my lonesome to review case files. With a disposable coffee mug in one hand and the third case file in the other, I stood in front of one of the boards reviewing the crime scene pictures from The Silencer's 2004 murders. Silently, I was thankful I wasn't chosen to visit the ME's office. I don't think I could stomach the sight of the guard's mouth sewn shut. It was bad enough in pictures. Sure, the bodies weren't mutilated but this looked like something straight out of a psycho movie. After a while, Hotch came up beside me.

"There's something about silencing his victims, something besides the symbolism. Maybe he's not mute, maybe he is. Maybe when he was a child he was derided for speaking by his mother? A sister? He might have a speech impediment and when others talk, he's mocking them like they mocked him." I thought.

"It would have been severe—a stutter maybe." Hotch believed. My attention went from being focused on him to Rossi and Reid entering the room.

"We've got ourselves a reader over here." Rossi announced.

"In multiple languages." Reid added.

"Spanish, English, and surprisingly enough German are Texas' main languages." I said. Reid paused.

"Yeah, that's right." He nodded. "But, he reads in French and most of his own writings are in English. His handwriting is the size of a courier type and so far I've read 50,000 words. The small print tells me he's methodical, not always social."

"That's no surprise." I impute.

"The narrow spacing indicates a tremendous amount of irritability."

"Can I see that?" I asked Reid. He handed me pictures of the writing and the jail cell.

"It's like a stream of consciousness. He's thinking and the pen just goes. The books he reads are for someone who's smart, but his writing is a total 180." I mused.

"Could be what he grew up hearing." Reid shrugged. Rossi looked from Reid to me.

"There's two of them." He exclaimed to Hotch. I smiled.

"He literally put words in the guard's mouth." Derek announced as he and JJ walked in holding up an evidence bag.

Once night fell, there was soon another murder. Reid and I were instructed to stay behind while the others investigated with CSI. The two of us worked in silence, reviewing the files and jotting down notes when thoughts crossed our minds. Once 9:45 hit, I decided to pour myself another cup of coffee. I could already tell it was going to be a long night. I sashayed over to the coffee station and poured the remaining of the pot into my cup. After throwing some cream in, I was back into the room with Reid. I sighed, sitting down and taking a sip of the room-temperature drink. I continued once more to read another part of the case file, even once I felt Reid's eyes piercing through me. I could feel my body heat up in embarrassment. Why was he staring? Did I do something wrong? Should I have asked if he wanted some?

"You like coffee?" He piped up. I looked up, feeling relieved I wasn't doing something unknowingly humiliating.

"Yeah, it's pretty much runs through my veins." I joked.

"That's great," Reid stuttered, "I mean, it's not great but coffee's good. It's healthy." He rambled.

"Yeah, well, usually I'd switch to tea at this hour but it looks like we're in for a long night." I sighed.

"I'm the same way." Reid chuckled.

"It's either this or a Five Hour Energy."

"You know those aren't good for your heart? It contains a mixture of vitamin B, excessive amounts of caffeine, and citicoline and it causes your heart to pump faster than normal. It's been linked to several deaths." Reid informed. My lips puckered in attempt to stop myself from laughing but it was to no avail. "What?" Reid cocked his head.

"You just know everything." I burst out into a wide smile. "It's crazy. You're like a living Google."

"I'm going to take that as a compliment." He believed. I immediately nodded.

"I wouldn't be grilling you for a bad thing, Doctor Reid." I winked. Reid opened his mouth to talk but couldn't form words. Interrupting his lack of speaking, my phone buzzed on the table. Not knowing the number, I picked the call up anyways.

"Kennedy." I answered.

"Hey, it's Morgan." He greeted.

"Hey, how's it going?" My tone became more relaxed.

"We got another note. I need some outside opinion."

"I'm going to put you on speaker, ok?"

"That's how we do it." He agreed before stating the note once I put him on speaker. "Waiting on the taste of honey, the smell of summer."

"So he's using the senses." I realized. "Sight, smell, taste? We're missing sound and touch."

"This guy's like Jekyll and Hyde." Morgan scoffed.

"I guess he thinks sweet notes make the murders less creepy." I rolled my eyes. "Thanks Morgan." And with that, I hung up.

"Maybe he's talking about a place." Reid thought.

"Yeah, but where?" I sighed.

Towards midnight, the profile was given. Six hours later, the body of an unknown man was found with his baby—who was alive and well—nearby. Hours later the six of us were sitting at the table throwing out ideas. I was staring at left side of the unsub's face, particularly at the scar under his left ear.

"You know he never mentioned hearing?" I mused and continued to elaborate. "In the senses. Hearing and touch are left out."

"Yeah, so?" Morgan shrugged.

"Why would he self inflict a wound under his ear if he couldn't hear?"

"Are you saying that he can?"

"I think he's trying to stop from hearing." I announced, putting the folder on the table. "Getting himself into solitary confinement wasn't because of his rage, it was because he wanted silence."

"What about an implant?" JJ asked.

"Garcia, do any of the children have a cochlear implant?" Hotch asked into the phone.

"1988 John Myers."

"He was 14 at the time." Hotch realized.

"His mom was paid 650 bucks for the medical trial." Garcia revealed.

"Trial?" I asked.

"Trial. Yikes, it was a highly experimental procedure. It was tested on humans and animals and caused quite the controversy." Garcia replied. Morgan quickly asked if he was deaf before the procedure.

"He had to be deaf in order to participate."

"So his mother gives him the gift of hearing that turns out to be a curse." Rossi said.

"His mom used him as a guinea pig. He spent the first 14 years of his life in silence and now he can't turn the noises off." I gravely said, feeling a pang of sympathy for the unsub.

It was soon revealed John Myers' isolation cell neighbored one of a Danny Tucker, who owned a honey farm nearby that was just demolished for a housing development. Even sooner, I found myself in the car with Hotch, Morgan, and JJ with my bullet proof vest strapped on and my gun plastered to my side. My eyes were wide, filled with fear. We were speeding through the Texas streets to save Danny Tucker in time.

"You ok?" JJ placed a hand on my bouncing knee.

"Going into the field for the first time is a bit intimidating."

"Even after the first time it's intimidating," She laughed, "You never know what you're going to get really. It's always a surprise."

"Great." My lips formed a tight line and a roll of nausea flowed through my stomach. Our SUV pulled up to the Tucker home and we quickly filed out, Marshall's behind us. I pulled out my gun and readied it. I could hear my blood pulsating in my ears and through my veins. My heart felt like it was halfway up my throat, and if I made one move I'd choke on it.

"Danny!" A woman inside the house cried. "Danny please!" Without hesitation Hotch pushed open the door and all of us were ushered in. This was it. There was no going back now. My gun was raised and I entered the house to see a woman and her daughter tied to two dining room chairs. Danny Tucker was unconscious in another one, with the unsub looming over him with a needle and sutures. JJ rushed over to the mother and daughter, comforting them.

"John Myer, FBI show me your hands." Hotchner yelled. The unsub craned his neck around and stared at Hotchner while I stood a way behind Danny Tucker's chair.

"Put down the gun." Hotchner loudly announced.

"John." I quietly piped up, putting one finger to my lips as I kept a solid grip on my gun. My heart rattled against my chest. I couldn't do this one sided conversation. I didn't know how the hell to talk a mute unsub down from killing someone. All I did know was that Hotch was being too loud, making John more and more unstable. "I know it's loud. Just put the gun down. It's okay." I spoke just above a whisper. John's left eye twitched as he hesitated. I looked from Hotch to Morgan, praying they'd give me backup. "See? Here, I'll do it too." I slowly put my gun back in its holster. "I know you can do it too, John." The unsub suddenly began signing words so quickly it looked like a jumbled mess.

"Please slow down." I whispered, praying the little bit of American Sign Language I learned in high school would pull through. The unsub repeated the signs.

"He's a liar. There's no peace." I quietly reiterated the signs. "Who's a liar, John? Danny?" He nodded. "There's no where to go. I'm not going back in there." I watched the unsub finish his hand motions while my heart sank. There were only two ways this would go: somehow we'd get the gun away from him and he'd go back to jail or he'd kill himself.

"There's peace. But there's no other way." I shook my head, looking sympathetically at the unsub. His lips formed a line and he swallowed a hard lump in his throat. His dry lips quivered before he stood up and backed up against a wall. He looked at Danny then stared at me, silently giving his last words.

"John." I called louder, hoping to prevent the inevitable as he positioned the gun to his temple.

The gun rang off, the loud boom echoing in my ears. I squeezed my eyes shut, hearing the wood underneath the unsub's body creak as he fell to the ground. A whimper came from the daughter beside JJ. I refused to open my eyes. I could feel warm spots of liquid on my right arm and cheek. A shaky breath passed through my lips. My eyes eventually opened to the unavoidable scene. The unsub laid dead with a hole in his head while Hotchner and Morgan slowly laid their guns back into their holsters. It was over. My first case was over.

"I'm sorry. That was out of my range. Especially for my first case." I spoke up to Hotch as we left the Tucker house and entered the thick wall of Texas heat. All I could think about was getting the blood spatter off of me.

"Yes and no. But, you handled that very well." He nodded. "By the look on his face, I don't think anyone's ever spoke to him with kindness before."

"No one deserves that." I muttered. A vision of the unsub with a gun pressed to his temple flashing before my eyes. At the end of the line of police cars, Rossi and Reid pulled up from visiting the honey farm. I couldn't think of talking to anyone about this right now. I stood beside the trunk of the SUV as Hotch unstrapped his vest. An officer came up to me with a damp towel, handing it over.

"Thank you." I nodded. I rubbed the damp towel over my cheek, thankful to get the blood off of me. I wanted nothing more than to shower in a gallon of disinfectant right now.

"Don't blame yourself." Hotch spoke up.

"Huh?" I looked up.

"Jail was his hell. He wasn't letting himself back in." I shook my head as Hotch spoke.

"I was stupid. It was stupid. I don't know why I thought I could handle a situation like that. Talking someone down isn't my job." I proceeded to scrub the blood off of my arm.

"But you did your best. One way or another it would have ended the same way. I'm sorry your first case was such a messy one."

"It's the job. Thanks Agent Hotchner." I stated.

"You can call me Hotch." The end of his lips lifted a little into what seemed like a smile. Hotch nodded, finally walking away over to a Marshall Agent who called him over.

"Are you okay?" Reid exclaimed, his eyes as wide as tennis balls, as he walked up to me with Rossi by his side. I reached up and closed the trunk of the car.

"Yeah," I nodded. "I'll be fine." I brushed past the two and decided to get into the car, not wanting to see or hear any more of this.

* * *

Walking into the BAU office that night was like having an elephant lifted off my shoulders. That was until Strauss was there to greet us.

"Don't tell me there's another one." Rossi stopped in his tracks.

"There's always another one." Strauss sympathetically said. I closed my eyes, silently groaning.

"I told you we should have just gotten into our cars." Rossi sighed.

"Where are we off to now?" JJ disappointingly asked.

"Home. You need to spend at least one night in your own beds."

"Don't have to tell me twice." I rose a brow, patting Rossi on the back. "Later."

"Yeah, wait for me!" JJ called as I rushed to the elevator. Rossi and Reid followed in suit.

The four of us entered the parking garage, talking about how thankful we were to sleep in our own beds tonight.

"As much as I'm dreading this ride home, my beds going to be so worth it." JJ happily sighed.

"Amen to that." I agreed.

"I'll see you all in the morning. Sleep up." Rossi waved as he got into his shiny back Cadillac sedan and JJ slipped into her BMW.

"Really wish teleporting was a thing already." I joked.

"You know, by the year 2100 scientists claim that teleportation and time travel will exist." Reid informed.

"With that brain of yours I'm sure if you helped it'd be sooner." I suggested.

"Well without the right technology it's inevitable." I quietly laughed, smiling even though I was to tired to move a muscle. I patted his shoulder.

"Goodnight Reid."

"Goodnight, Kennedy." He called.

"We're not on the job." I called back. "It's Alex." I flashed a smile before slipping away into my own sedan, leaving a smiling, exhausted Dr. Reid behind.

* * *

A/N: Hello welcome to my criminal minds story! This is my first one and omg i know this chapter was long but pretty please with a cherry on top review this so i can continue and be inspired! Spencer Reid is my life. Also, i'm trying to make a trailer for this on youtube but I dont exactly know how to get scenes and stuff like everyone does. So any tips on that? Plz review! I love you all!


	2. Chapter 2

Hello readers!

I've changed this story a bit. I've uploaded a new story, titled Safe Haven. I've just edited a lot of it. Please go check it out and review and I'd appreiciate it more than anything in the whole wide world!

Much love,

Elena


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